Twitter lets advertisers target tweets by location

Twitter logo is displayed at the entrance of Twitter headquarters in San Francisco in California. AFP/Kimihiro Hoshino

Twitter on Thursday began letting businesses more easily turn tweets into advertising that targets users of the globally popular one-to-many text messaging service.

Advertisers can aim terse missives of 140 characters or less to Twitter users based on their geographic location or whether they access the service using mobile devices or personal computers, according to product manager Kevin Weil.

Previously, such "promoted tweets" could be targeted in those ways only after the messages were sent to all Twitter followers. "We're introducing targeted tweets, an enhancement that enables brands to reach specific audiences on Twitter without first sending a tweet to all followers," Weil said in a blog post.

"Now global brands that have different launch dates for several countries can send tailored messages at different times, customized for the users in each country."

Twitter has been testing the new advertising model for several weeks with companies including British Airways, Coca Cola and The Washington Post, according to Weil.